


The Second Coming

by fairyScorpicus



Series: Things Fall Apart [1]
Category: Markiplier TV (Web Series), Video Blogging RPF, Who Killed Markiplier? (Web Series), markiplier - Fandom
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Blood and Injury, Blood and Torture, Blood and Violence, Broken Bones, CPR, Coercion, Dark, Don't Read This, Drowning, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Inspired by Doctor Discord, Inspired by Doctor Discord's Trauma AU, Major Character Injury, Mark Fischbach Egos, Mental Coercion, Possession, Psychological Drama, Psychological Torture, Self-Sacrifice, Torture, Trauma, Violence, Waterboarding, but apparently its very squint and you'll see, but it fails, do androids have emotions, in the sense of, this is not a nice fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-11
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:46:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24669355
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fairyScorpicus/pseuds/fairyScorpicus
Summary: Turning and turning in the widening gyreThe falcon cannot hear the falconer;Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhereThe ceremony of innocence is drowned;The best lack all conviction, while the worstAre full of passionate intensity.-The Second Coming, By William Butler YeatsOr: Actor Mark is out for revenge. And he is going to get it.Inspired by Doctor Discord's Trauma AU
Series: Things Fall Apart [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1783681
Comments: 13
Kudos: 38





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is inspired by Doctor Discord's Trauma AU.

[ Doctor Discord ](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doctor_Discord/pseuds/Doctor_Discord)

[ Doctor Discord’s Trauma AU ](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1739428)

\----------------------

It was a miraculous stroke of good luck and a terrible streak of bad luck that Dark and Wilford weren’t home when Actor Mark attacked. As Yancy sat in his cell next to Google’s, listening to the sound of the other egos worrying, he found himself wondering if Dark and Wilford would’ve been able to overcome Actor anyways. Mark had arrived incredibly prepared, and had taken all the egos by surprise. Not to mention, Yancy mentally added, Mark was a formidable, powerful enemy. Even if Dark and Wilford could find them, there was no telling if they would be able to free them without it leading to a fight. And there was no telling how much time had passed since the attack, or since Yancy and the others had woken up with roaring headaches to find themselves in the cages. There was a chance that they didn’t even know yet.

From what Yancy could make out, they were in a large basement of some kind. They were all in cages, some in theirs together, such as the Jim Twins, Google and Bing, and for some inexplicable reason Erik and King, who huddled together in the cell across from him. Yancy assumed it was simply Mark sorting some of the younger, childish egos and the bots together, for a reason that eluded him but made him nervous all the same. Yancy glanced around at the other egos and noticed that the other Googles were missing, but dared not to ask about them. The room was dimly lit and he couldn’t see if there were cameras. Best not to risk it. If Mark could watch or hear them, any element of the unknown they could create would be ruined.

Speak of the devil and he shall appear.

“Why hello there,” he greeted, grinning, arms out in mock invitation. “Welcome to my manor.” He was immaculate, his red suit the color of blood was without a single speck of dirt to be seen. His hair was slicked back in a way that would’ve made Yancy envious, if he weren’t so afraid.

“Now,” he continued. “I know that Dark and Wilford weren’t there. You’re probably hoping they’ll save you. They won’t, because you will tell me where they are.” He walked down the row of cages, footsteps soundless.

No one said a word. Actor raised an eyebrow.

“Seriously?” He stopped near Yancy’s cage, and Yancy held his breath with the tension. But Actor turned away from him to the cage across from him. He stepped towards Erik and King’s cage and the pair shrunk back.

“Look at you two,” he mockingly cooed. “How adorable.” He crooked his finger invitingly, smile all sharp edges and poorly hidden malice. “Come a little closer,” he invited, painfully deceptive, and neither stepped forward. The smile wavered. “Come on,” He crooned, a hint of steel entering his voice. 

Yancy watched anxiously, breath caught in his throat. There was a small pause, then King shuffled forward a step, bravely placing himself between Erik and Actor. He was shaking, clearly terrified. Actor laughed cruelly, and reached his hand through the bars.

“Leave them alone!” Yancy said, teetering into fear. He wasn’t sure if he meant to shout or not, but the words sounded loud in the silent, tension-filled room. Actor paused, hand halfway to King’s face. He pulled his arm back, turning around.

Actor grinned, his guise at friendliness gone as he took a step toward Yancy’s cage.

“What was that accent?” He laughed. Yancy straightened up, instinctively trying to appear stronger. He noted with some relief that King has shrunk back to the farthest part of his cell, dragging Erik back as well.

“God,” Actor mocked. “Did they make a greaser ego?”

Yancy knew better than to reply, knowledge gained from his time in prison. He merely curled his hands into fists, but Actor noticed and only laughed harder, voice cruel.

“You have little tattoos on your knuckles! How cute.” He gestured at Yancy. “If you’re so eager to volunteer yourself instead, then come here.”

Yancy shifted his weight uneasily, but made no move to step forward. Actor frowned, annoyed.

“I said,” he hissed. “Come here.” Actor’s aura flashed with authority, too dark to properly make out, and Yancy instinctively lurched backwards, sensing the danger, but he only served to anger Actor more.

Moving faster than Yancy’s eyes could follow, Actor leaped into the cage and wrapped a chain around Yancy’s neck. Holding the chain like a leash, Actor yanked viciously, causing it to tighten around Yancy’s neck. Yancy fell to his knees, hands flying up to his throat in a futile attempt to breathe. He could hear the others shouting in alarm.

“You are going to play nice,” Actor snarled threateningly. “Now get moving.” The chain loosened enough for Yancy to gasp for air, before Actor was moving out of the cell, forcing Yancy off the floor. Stumbling after the man in red, Yancy felt a growing sense of dread, but there was nothing he could do.

Actor led Yancy to the end of the row of cells, where the room tapered off into a half-circle. Chains hung from the walls and the lonesome table and chair had never seemed so terrifying.

Yancy doesn’t know how he hadn’t seen the baton in Actor’s hands.

_Thwak!_

Pain bloomed in Yancy’s chest. He stumbled, nearly falling to his knees again with a wheeze. He heard more shouting from the others, but he was more distracted by Actor kicking the back of his knees, sending him to the ground. He caught himself with his hands, but his knees smarted with pain.

"Stay there for a moment, would you?" Actor asked, dragging something out from a corner, but Yancy, sensing an opportunity, sprang to his feet.

He barely made it two steps before he was yanked back again.

"You just don't like to listen, do you." Actor said flatly. The object he dragged out was a large bucket of water. Yancy's eyes widened, and as he tried to pull away, Actor tightened the chain until Yancy couldn't breathe again.

Forced to his knees, the edge of the bucket was level with his abdomen. Actor stood behind Yancy, chaining his hands behind his back.

"Tell me," Actor demanded. "Where is Dark and Wilford?"

Yancy stayed stubbornly silent.

Actor laid his hand on Yancy's head, finger lax on Yancy's slicked back hair.

"Where are they?" He repeated.

"I don't know." Yancy said, smirking despite his fear.

"Liar." Finger dug tightly into Yancy's hair and Actor yanked Yancy's head under the water.

It was cold, practically freezing, and Yancy automatically jerked his head upwards, but Actor's grip was like iron, keeping his face in the water. Bubbles escaped through his nose. Already his lungs were starting to protest, having been unprepared for the chain around his neck, let alone this. It was likely that only seconds had passed, but underwater, they felt like minutes. Panic began to grow. When was Actor going to let him up? Just because they were egos didn't mean they didn't need to breathe. He tried to heave himself up, fighting against the hand pulling on his hair. He thrashed, panic threatening to take over.

And then sweet relief. Yancy gasped for air, uncaring of the water that dripped down his face and ran into his mouth. Actor's painful grip was still in his hair, and Yancy hadn't had a chance to catch his breath before he was sent under again.

His lungs burned. Already he was fighting back against Actor, desperately trying to reach air to no avail. Time seemed to stretch for hours, though it couldn't be longer than two minutes. He could feel his shirt getting drenched from the waves his fighting caused. His mind screamed at him, telling him to open his mouth and breathe, even though the rational part of his mind knew he was still underwater.

More moments passed. He couldn't stand it. He opened his mouth slightly, and-

His head was yanked above water. He gulped in air, chest heaving. Some distant part of Yancy's mind was cursing himself for seeming so weak, struggling even after two dips in the water.

"Where are they?" Actor demanded, leaning down to speak in Yancy's ear. Yancy ignored him in favor of gasping in air. Actor made an annoyed noise.

"Where is Dark and Wilford?" He spoke louder.

Yancy didn't reply.

"How annoying," Actor said.

And he dunked Yancy's head back under the water.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: implied rape at the end. I might add a separate story about it

Yancy surfaced, wheezing and coughing as the manicured hand pulled his head out of the bucket of water by his hair again.

"Such luscious locks," Actor crooned mockingly, running his fingers through Yancy's hair. The water had washed the gel away, leaving behind long curls. Yancy tried to pull away, cringing, but Actor's finger tightened their grip, trapping Yancy's head.

"Now, now," Actor scolded. "We don't want to hurt the childish ones. You can tell me where Dark and Wilford are and then I'll let you all go." Yancy grimaced, water running down his chin. Actor's placating tone could not hide to the glaring, obvious fact that Actor would not let them go.

"I don't know," he spat out, still sucking in air, and Actor huffed.

"Wrong answer."

Again and again. Yancy had lost track of the time, or how many times he was sent under the water. His chest burned. His throat hurt. He could taste the water and could feel it up his nose.

 _Neti pot_ , he thought dryly.

He spluttered and coughed as he was pulled up again. Actor Tutted disapprovingly.

"Yancy, Yancy, Yancy," he sighed. He laid his hand of Yancy's hair. Yancy didn't have the energy to cringe away. "all of this would just _stop-"_ He tugged on Yancy's hair for emphasis before letting go again, and Yancy let his head drop down- "If you give me what I want."

"I don't know," Yancy hissed, gathering all his energy. "And if I did, I would never tell you."

Actor snarled in frustration. "So be it." He dunked Yancy's head underwater.

Illinois watched with wide eyes. His small, barred cell had been next to Yancy's and only four cells away from the back of the room, giving him a relatively good view of the waterboarding. He gripped the bars of his cell fiercely as he stared through Yancy's empty cage, and the Host's, the Author's, and Bim's cages to watch Yancy struggling weakly and he drowned. Yancy's last reply had clearly angered Actor, and it felt like Yancy had been under longer than before.

Illinois clenched the bars until his knuckles went white as Yancy's thrashing got more frantic. He couldn't stand it.

"Stop it!" He screamed at last, over the other egos' anxious noises. Everyone had been yelling at first, but it had only served to make Actor smirk, so it had been mainly reduced to loud murmuring and the frequent shout of Yancy's name. Actor glanced over, eyebrow raised. Illinois took advantage of Actor's momentary attention to point at Yancy's fighting, which had started to die down.

"You're killing him!" Illinois shouted. "He's been under too long!" He slammed his hand against the bars in a fit of desperation as Yancy gave a weak twitch.

"I don't have to listen to you," Actor snapped back. "I know what I'm doing." He turned back to Yancy, still underwater in delight, only to freeze.

The room was silent in shock. Yancy wasn't moving. Actor let go of his grip on Yancy's hair, but the prison-garbed man only slumped over to the ground, drenched and unmoving.

"Whoops," said Actor, which triggered everyone to start screaming.

"Yancy!" One of the others howled- Silver? Yandere? Illinois couldn't tell- while another burst into hysterical tears- Erik maybe?- and someone else shrieked in a way that Illinois would've teased them for if he wasn't staring blankly at Yancy's unmoving chest. He couldn't believe it. Yancy couldn't be dead.

"No!"

"Ugh," said Actor, aura manifesting again. It twitched and curled as if alive. "Do I have to do CPR?" He sounded disgusted. He kicked Yancy's limp body so he was laying back to the floor, inciting more yelling from the imprisoned egos.

His aura flashed as Actor pushed down on Yancy's chest, and Yancy sat up immediately as Actor stepped back.

Illinois heaved a sigh of relief as Yancy coughed up water. The Prisoner sat up, turned to his side, and threw up.

"You are annoyingly difficult," Actor sneered. "get up." He yanked on Yancy's leash, but the man only slumped over, gasping.

"I said get up!" He yanked again. Yancy twitched but hadn't recovered any strength since his near-death experience. Actor snarled in anger. "Get up!" He pulled on the leash, and Yancy spasmed, chocking.

"Stop it!" Someone screamed, and Illinois realized it was him. But Actor didn't listen.

Yancy felt like he was dying. He had just fallen unconscious, and he hated that he was awake again. He had really thought for a moment there, as his vision faded and he struggled to move his limbs, that he was dying, but he had opened his eyes again to find Actor standing over him. Unless he was in hell, he was still very much alive. But it felt like he was dying again.

Yancy floundered, his instincts the only thing powering him to keep him alive, twitching in a helpless attempt to stand up, to free himself, to move, but he lacked the strength to lift his head more than an inch off the ground before flopping down again. His vision began to fail again, black spots appearing and all-consuming, and he spasmed weakly, body trembling-

and Actor let go with a sound of disgust. His hearing had gone to shit, senses blurred, but he managed to focus back to reality despite some reluctance.

"-pass out on me again," Actor was saying, lip curled.

By the time Yancy became aware of the sensation of the cold wet floor on his back, he had also become aware of his... erection? He stared at it, dumbfounded and confused. He didn't feel aroused, and he certainly wasn't that kinky...

Actor followed Yancy's line of sight.

"An erection from asphyxiation," he drawled, drawing in closer. "A normal human physical reaction. But you're not completely human, are you?" Yancy frowned, gathering enough energy to finally sit up, arms trembling.

"I consider myself very human," he managed to say. Actor swooped into his face, eyes blazing.

"But you're not," he hissed. "You are all monsters, and I'm the Hero." He grinned suddenly.

"And it's my job to make you suffer."


	3. Chapter 3

Yancy fell to the floor of his cell cage as Actor slammed the door shut behind him with a clang. Actor spun around, leaving Yancy on the floor without a care. He caught sight of the Host sitting in the cage next to Yancy's, muttering to himself.

"Talking to yourself isn't a good sign," Actor teased, but the man kept muttering and ignoring him. Actor frowned, leaning forward, and caught some of the words being said.

"-then turned away to face the opposite cage-" Actor turned away, facing the cage across from Yancy's, feeling confused. It had been his plan all along to scare the others one more time, but some suspicious part of his mind wondered...

He shook his head, and, ignoring the insults hurled his way, he slid over to Erik and King's cage.

"King," he said melodramatically, leaning against the bars. "I have a tiny little question to ask."

King, already in the back corner of the cage with Erik, shrunk away further.

"Not about Dark and Wilford," he waved his hand dismissively. "It's something else. You don't have to answer." He leaned forward conspiratorily, beckoning.

King inched forward, looking suspicious and afraid.

"King," Actor whispered with a little smile. "Do you ever think about how Yancy getting hurt is all your fault?"

King flinched back as if slapped, eyes widening.

"Liar!" Erik shouted, grabbing King by the shoulders and pulling him away from the man in red.

"Am I?" Actor asked, tilting his head. King's eyes started to water, his expression filling with self-hatred and guilt. 

Hook, line, and sinker, Actor thought smugly. He pulled away from the cage and walked to the exit, waving a hand over his shoulder casually.

"Toodles!" he called and slammed the door shut.

Illinois pressed himself against the bars of his cage.

"Yancy," he hissed. "Are you alright?"

The ego in question was still laying face to the ground, not moving save for the shaking of his shoulders. Illinois realized belatedly that he was crying. He shut his eyes tight and mentally cursed the fact that there was nothing he could do to help.

He started to reach through the bars in an attempt to touch Yancy, but thought better of it. He looked across Yancy's cell to the Host, who had stopped muttering and seemed to make eye contact with Illinois.

"No nightmares tonight," The Host agreed with Illinois' unspoken question.

He nodded in silent thanks and leaned against the bars. He could feel the cold from the metal sink into his shirt. He looked back at Yancy, clothes still damp. Reluctantly, Illinois removed his hat and, reaching through the bars, placed it on Yancy's head. Yancy flinched violently, then curled up into a ball, jamming the hat firmly on his head. Illinois sighed quietly.

He sat against the bars again and watched the others carefully all night long.

He wished there was more he could do.


	4. Chapter 4

Illinois sat up, heart pounding when the basement door flung open and Actor entered the room.

"Good morning!" he crowed, wearing his red suit and looking well-groomed, and Illinois wondered what time it was. "Rise and shine!"

The other egos startled awake, picking themselves off the floor. Actor stepped down the aisle.

"It's a new day, people! Let's start off simple. Anyone want to volunteer Dark and Wilford's whereabouts?" Actor opened his arms in question. "Anyone?" He turned to the Jims. "You guys are reporters, right? What's the scoop?"

The Jims squeaked, clinging to each other in fear.

"Scary Jim!" one of them yelped to the other, who gripped the first Jim tightly.

"Scary Jim?" Actor repeated, dismayed. "I have a name. It's Mark. It's not that hard to remember."

Illinois slunk closer to the door of his cage, watching the interaction carefully.

"Illy..." someone murmured, and Illinois turned his head to see Yancy pressed against the far wall of his cell, making steady eye contact.

"You can't let him hurt the Jims," he said desperately, and Illinois sighed.

"I know." He took a deep breath, readying himself.

"-'ve thought you would have more decorum," Actor was saying, but wasn't interrupted by a loud bang.

"You leave them alone!" Illinois shouted, smacking his hands against the bars.

Actor narrowed his eyes, annoyed.

"And who are you?" he turned away from the Jims.

"Illinois." He said simply, but Actor's eyes widened comically.

"You've got to be kidding me," A wide grin split across his face. "Little adventurer getup, named after a state," he wheezed. "You're an Indiana Jones knock-off!"

"His real name was Henry," Illinois added defensively, but it only served to make Actor laugh harder.

"Alright, little explorer," he chuckled. "I can see you're trying to be the hero. Let's see what you've got."

Illinois allowed his hands to be cuffed behind his back.

 _This is the something I can do_ , he thought, keeping his breath even. _This is how I can help._

Illinois kept his mouth closed as Actor led him to the interrogation table and tied him to the chair and stayed silent as Actor selected a pair of pliers.

"I think we can start slow," He said, approaching Illinois. He eyed the pliers in his hand speculatively. "You ever had your fingernails pulled out?"

"Actually," Illinois said, raising an eyebrow smoothly. "I have." Actor's eyebrows shot up.

"Really?" He grabbed the end of a fingernail, not quite pulling, but digging into Illinois' finger enough that the adventurer had to fight back a grimace. "You'll have to tell me that story sometime."

"I'd rather not," Illinois replied, clenching his teeth as Actor moved a little, yanking on the nail slightly. Actor pouted.

"Shame. Would've been interesting." With a sudden yank, he tore out Illinois' fingernail. Illinois let out a shout of surprise and pain. "If you've done this before, why are you being such a baby about it?"

"Maybe you should have a fingernail pulled out to see," Illinois shot back, jaw clenched tightly. He tried to concentrate on keeping his face passive, but the pain was too distracting.

"No thanks." The plier selected another nail. "You know, you can tell me what I want to hear anytime you want."

"No thanks," Illinois mocked back, and Actor yanked out another nail. "AAAGH!" He screamed shortly through his teeth, grinding the shout to a stop.

"Tell me," Actor said, selecting another nail. "Does it hurt more if I pull it off slower?"

It did. Illinois tried to instinctively curl in on himself, but his restraints prevented it. His vision began to water.

"Come on," Actor said impatiently. "Tell me what I want to know," He said irritably. He moved on to the next nail. Illinois blinked to prevent the tears from falling.

"I'm not telling you a thing," Illinois hissed, crying out involuntarily again as Actor pulled out another nail. A tear slipped out and Illinois internally cursed himself.

 _I can take this,_ he told himself. _I have to._

"You irritate me," Actor informed him, yanking out another nail. "The childish ones are amusing. Yancy-" He waggled his eyebrows- "is entertaining." Illinois snarled in anger. "Ooh, does that irritate you?" He got closer to Illinois, eyes dancing maliciously. "Did it make you mad, when I-"

Illinois headbutted him.

"Ouch!" Actor leaped back, hand coming up to cover his face. He snarled. "How dare you!" Swinging his arm, he decked Illinois in the face, knocking the adventurer's head back. He snatched up a small hammer, leaving the pliers on the edge of the table. "I'll just have to move on to the next step sooner than expected," He growled, unbuttoning and removing his red suit jacket, folding it neatly and placing on the table out of Illinois' reach. He rolled up his dress shirt sleeves slowly. Pinning down Illinois' hands against the table, he brought the hammer down with a crack.

Illinois shouted.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At some point I'll make an intelligble map of the cages

"Don't be such a baby over some broken bones," Actor said, holding the hammer carelessly. Illinois just whined in response.

"Come on," Actor said. "Just tell me where Dark and Wilford are."

Illinois didn't reply, choosing to sit there, trembling, silently.

"Whatever," Actor rolled his eyes. "Time to play more interesting games." He freed Illinois and dragged him out of the chair by the back of his shirt. Illinois didn't protest as he was shoved roughly into his cell, cradling his hands close to his chest and resolutely ignoring the worried gaze of the other egos. The only one not paying attention was Google, softly whirring and deep in thought. The door clanged behind him so quickly that the adventurer wouldn't have been able to escape even if he was at full health. Actor spun around, eyeing the others.

"Does anyone else want to play?" He stepped past the Jims' cage, who lept into each other's arms in fear. He swooped by Erik and King. He paused suddenly, causing the egos to fall silent save for the Host's mumbling and Google softly murmuring something to Bing.

"Now," The self-proclaimed hero said slowly, eyes lighting up at the sight of new prey, "Who... are you?"

Yandere shrunk back, eyes wide. The other egos tensed. Actor began to step forward, deliberately slowly, soaking up the growing terror with glee. Yandere gripped the collar of their shirt nervously.

"A little schoolgirl!" Actor laughed in amusement. "How ador-"

"Stop." The voice was tired and annoyed. Actor's smile faltered in its place. No one was supposed to volunteer. The man in red looked over his shoulder to see one of the android egos gripping the bars of his cell lightly, looking all for the world inconvenienced and bored. Actor suppressed a frown.

"What's your name again, little robot?" He asked. The android glared balefully at him.

"Google." he stated, and Actor glanced at the glowing letter on his chest.

"Of course." he eyed the ego as calculating as the android eyed him. "And let me guess: you don't feel pain."

"Obviously." Google allowed himself to smile smugly.

Actor gritted his teeth, stepping forward, allowing himself a small victory in the form of the other android in the cage stepping backward. Google didn't even blink as he approached. "So why should I bother playing with you?" he asked. "Give me one good reason."

"I'm literally a walking database." Google raised an eyebrow. "If anyone has cool hard facts about Dark and Wilford..." He let his voice trail off intentionally.

Actor pushed down a growl. The android was right. He was a walking treasure trove of information, far more useful than any other ego was likely to be, and yet...

"You won't just hand over that information."

"Naturally." Google agreed neutrally.

"And torture won't work."

"Clearly." 

The one-word replies were getting on Actor's nerves, but he had one last ace up his sleeve.

"Surely you aren't relying on any stupidity on my part," he said, baring his teeth slightly as he spoke. He smoothed down his suit as he stepped closer to the androids' cage. "I do dabble in technology."

"I anticipated as such," Google admitted, but his eyes narrowed slightly. Could robots have tells, Actor wondered, or was it purposeful, to trick him into thinking he had the upper hand? Indubitably, he already had it, so there was no point, right? He smothered his uncertainty. It was simply a ploy, and it wouldn't work.

"However, I am the most advanced android in the world, and no amount of hacking could possibly help you." Google continued, and Actor lifted an eyebrow in amusement. As if the hero wasn't prepared to take the annoying robot apart piece by piece. He extended an arm to the android as he unlocked the cage.

"Upstairs." He said simply, and the android grabbed his arm without hesitation and gripped him tightly. Tighter. Actor couldn't hold back a sharp gasp as Google steadily crushed his arm.

"You idiot," he hissed at the android, struggling to keep control of himself through the pain. "I still have the upper hand," He spat in the android's face and lashed out towards the other egos, locked in their cages. With a flash, the Entity knocked the egos against the wall, and Google's grip loosened instantly. He let go and stepped back, to fast to be human.

"Behave," Actor tutted, turning his attention to his arm. He tried to rotate his arm for a better angle but struggled. His arm was... broken? He glanced up at the android out of shock before schooling his expression. His mind whirled. It was just a crack, but the amount of pressure needed to break bones was beyond the capability of a normal human...

"How strong are you?" He asked finally, summoning the Entity to repair his arm. The android narrowed his eyes as the actor's arm corrected itself.

"Strong," Google said simply, processors starting to hum, trying to figure out how Actor's aura could do the things that it did. It was completely unlike Dark's aura, and yet so similar.

"Come on," Actor said, this time not offering his arm out. He started walking, keeping Google in his sights. "I have a feeling you'll be keeping me busy all night." He grinned in Yancy's direction, taking glee in the ego's terror at being on the receiving end of Actor's attention. Then Actor turned back to the door and exited with the android, leaving the other egos to themselves.

Bing gripped the bars of his cell, eyes wide, never taking his gaze away from the closed door.

"Google," he murmured to himself. "You better know what you're doing..."

Upstairs, Google smiled internally as he turned on his GPS.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hnnnggg I should probably put a bit more explanation on what the heck is going on with Actor's "aura". While the egos don't really have auras, Dark's got his monochrome thing going on with him, and the egos assume Actor has an aura too, but its really The Entity, so every time it does things like lashing out the egos (especially google) get confused because Dark can't do that so why can Actor.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Google this, Google that, Google here, Google there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wouldn't tag this as a suicide attempt... but be warned that there is a moment when someone goes "hmm better kill myself to save the others"  
> No one actually dies though  
> If it makes you uncomfortable, skip anything after the sentence "Location received" breathed Red..." and then ill make a short summary of what you missed at the beginning of the next chapter

Google listened to the sound of his core humming, taking care not to overheat as he played his elaborate game with Actor. While he was forced to admit that Mark was not as clueless as he anticipated (it had been a shock when the man had attempted to "OK Google" him, but Google had long ago deleted the coding for that glaring weakness. It had been a difficult process, maybe four times longer as he had to repeat the process with his brothers, but wasn't Google glad he had done it now?), he was somewhat relieved to note that the man's skills in software and hardware weren't a particular challenge to beat.

Actor snarled in frustration as he painstakingly attempted to get through Google's firewall, and Google allowed himself to smirk. At the rate that the man in red was going, the other Googles would have his location in no time.

"Wow," Google said sarcastically, unable to resist taunting Actor when the android's victory was so close at hand, "You must have been an engineer in some life. Truly, your skills astound me."

Actor turned and shot him a look full of venom, but Google remained unphased.

"Why can't coding be like everything else in life?" Actor complained to no one in particular, not waiting for any response on Google's behalf. "It's so much easier to just _break_ things than to find cracks in the wall."

"And yet it makes it just that harder to fix it back up," Google returned, but if he were human, he would have shuffled in his seat uneasily as a new danger presented itself. How long would it take before Actor thought taking Google apart piece by piece would be easier? And certainly, once he got what he wanted, there wasn't any real need to put Google back together. He sensed a new variable in his coding, not from Actor, but from himself. He imagined it was a bit like how humans interpreted fear, and appropriately suppressed it for later examination.

"I never fix anything I break," Actor muttered mutinously under his breath, and wasn't that exactly what Google didn't want to hear?

It had been 2 days, 16 hours, 33 minutes, and 45.8 seconds since Google Prime had gone offline, coinciding with what was now realized to be when Actor attacked the manor. It had been 2 days, 13 hours, 54 minutes, and 9.4 seconds since Dark and Wilford had shown up at the designated safe house. It had been 2 days, 8 hours, 42 minutes, and 30.6 seconds since the five of them had confirmed that everyone else in their misshapen, strange family was... gone.

Green closed his eyes, shutting out the stimuli of the outside world. It was a waste of space when he could devote more power to trying to figure out what happened, if he could've stopped it, where they were...

"I've run the calculations," Red said. "We were lucky that we were not there. The probability that Dark and Wilford would have been taken as well is high. As it is-"

"Are you feeling lucky?" Green replied sharply. "Because I am not. We don't have a clue where they are, and the probability of overpowering Actor, even if we knew where he is, is-"

"I know," Red said. "We know. But why don't _you_ know, that there is nothing we could have done?"

"I haven't run all the possible scenarios," Green said shortly.

"What scenarios?" Oliver spoke up from his spot, scoffing, and Green opened his eyes to see the yellow-themed android finally sitting up for the first time since they confirmed that they were the only ones remaining.

"Oliver," Green said carefully, choosing to address his brother by his preferred name rather than color. "I-"

"I've been running the calculations longer and faster than you," Oliver interrupted, and Green made no outward reaction. He had feared when the android had first frozen up that he had simply shut himself down, unable to compute with the cold hard facts. But it seemed that he had simply thrown himself into the work with a kind of desperation that Green could not completely share. It was what humans would call hard, Green mused, to fill up his hard drive with such seemingly useless facts on human emotions and human reactions and to act accordingly. Oliver was the most human of the bunch, and while Red and Google had mocked him at times, Green had realized that the yellow android had immersed himself in a world that the others could not follow with such ease.

Green knew what one was supposed to feel when one's family was kidnapped. Grief, anger, desperation, misery. He couldn't say he felt those things, other than the understanding that time was of the essence in any case. Oliver seemed to feel, seemed to thrive off running on emotions. Google and Red never attempted to pretend, not like Green had when he realized that most of the egos preferred Oliver over the others. Sure, the Host, Dark, Dr. Iplier, and Bing never seemed to mind their logical disposition, but it seemed no secret that Oliver was the one most approached by the others. Green had felt jealous even as he feared that such emotions would break the android. And yet-

"I have been working harder than either of you," Oliver hissed. "There was nothing we could have done. And now, nothing we can do until we find them. To invite Actor to our doorstep is to admit defeat. A straight attack would never work. We need something besides brute force. The factor of surprise, some intelligence-"

"A plan." Dark summarized, standing in the doorway.

"We can get the upper hand," Green realized, switching his processing power away from what humans might call guilt. "The likely hood is high that Actor doesn't know about us-" he gestured to Red and Oliver- "And we do have something he wants. Or, someone."

"Dark," Red agreed. "If anyone can stand their own the longest, and serve as the biggest distraction..." He let his voice trail off.

"Distraction?" Wilford popped in with a flash of pink, a grin on his face. "Why, I can make a bigger commotion than old Mister High and Mighty!"

"Absolutely not, Wilford," Dark said firmly, crossing his arms.

"This requires proprioception," Red added, wrinkling his nose. "Something you do not have." Dark turned his glower from Wilford to Red. "What? He doesn't!"

"Thank god I don't!" Wilford wrinkled his nose. "That sounds like a terrible disease."

"It means you can sense the mood of the room," Green dumbed down flatly. It wasn't a precise definition, but he had a feeling that Wilford wouldn't understand anyway.

"I'm a game show host!" Wilford argued. "I can 'sense the mood of the room'!" He used air quotes for emphasis. "Why, just last-"

"Enough." Dark interrupted. "I'm the distraction. It's settled."

"If it gets too dangerous, you can just teleport away," Oliver added, eyebrows furrowed. Dark opened his mouth to respond, probably to promise something stupid like 'I won't run away', which equated to 'I will place myself in possibly unnecessary danger', which was annoying but also less likely to happen than if Wilford was the distraction, so they'd have to use Dark anyways, even if there weren't a dozen reasons already to use Dark instead, but Green beat him to the punch.

" _While Dark is the distraction,_ Wilford will-" Green cut himself off. Something was different. Faster than Dark or Wilford could follow, Green exchanged glances with the other androids, already finding the _ping_ in his system and tracking it down.

It had been 2 days, 16 hours, 33 minutes, and 45.8 seconds since Google Prime had gone offline, and now-

"Location received," Red breathed, and Green rattled off the address to Dark, already pulling up routes to arrive.

"What an idiot!" Oliver burst out, and Green followed his thought process instantly.

_What sort of foolish thing had Google landed himself into in order to send them his location?_

Google would never put himself in a position of danger, not at any cost, not even for Red, Green, or Oliver's sake, so why would he be putting himself in danger if there was a chance that Actor would destroy him? Surely the probability of being destroyed was greater than the probability of being saved, unless...

"Unless he has concluded that his life is not worth the lives of his family..." Red said out loud, voice reverent in a way Green had never heard before.

Illogical. Emotional. Impossible. Idiotic. Possibly the least likely event in the whole world.

Perhaps his brothers were more human than he had thought, Green realized, pushing down what humans would call panic and jealousy. He would have to give them due credit if it turns out he was the most robotic one of them all.

Actor stood up suddenly, chair sent flying. His aura twitched like an angry cat.

"Here's what we're going to do," Actor hissed suddenly. "I'm going to _tear you apart, piece by piece,_ until you give me what I want."

Google froze.

"And what exactly do you want?" Google said, keeping his voice even as he shut off his GPS. "I can't just recite the entire list of everything I have on Dark and Wilford."

"Oh, I want more than that." Actor bared his teeth into a twisted approximation of a smile. "I want _everything_."

"And if I'd rather be deactivated?" Google countered, feeling a twinge of what must be fear.

"Then I'll extract the information from your corpse."

If Google were human, he would have swallowed. "I see."

He tried calculating whether it would be better in the long run to deactivate or to give in. Deactivate, and delete all information before he died, he decided.

"I'd like to see you try." Actor's eyes widened. With a defiant laugh, Google moved to shut himself down.

Nothing.

Google frowned, trying again to no avail to deactivate.

A bubble popped up.

[REQUIRES ADMIN PERMISSIONS]

Actor started laughing hysterically, and said something, but Google didn't hear.

Google couldn't feel panic. Google _couldn't_ feel panic. But the time needed to get around admin permissions was time he did not have.

Reluctantly, he lowered his firewalls.

"I'll fight you every step of the way," he promised, and Actor laughed harder.

"Will you?" With a clink of his mouse, Actor downloaded something onto Google. The code seemed familiar and far too intricate to be Mark's own handiwork. Too familiar, Google realized, systems stuttering as the code was implemented. Because Google had dealt with this before. Deleted it before.

His system restarted and his back straightened of its own accord. Actor grinned at the android.

"OK, Google."

The android's eyes flashed in response.

"What can you tell me about Dark and Wilford?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe green said are you feeling lucky
> 
> god it was fun to write from the googles perspective??? i mean yes half of the chapter was just "do they have feelings" but I mean there was plot too so
> 
> also they're so stupid
> 
> Green, experiencing emotions: Are these fake?  
> Red and Google: hehe suppression  
> Oliver: Wow! I have healthily embraced my emotions!  
> The Others: bro wtf


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Every ego ever: What if,,,, I come up with my own individual plan for single-handedly taking down Actor?
> 
> warning: like literally the entire chapter is just crazy amounts of violence but that definitely a given about this fic??

The man was no longer lying on the ground.

He was afraid, and he was ashamed.

He had no reason to be afraid, he told himself sharply. His powers had protected him this far, and could continue to protect him. If only he hadn't been a coward, he could've protected the others too.

"It's time," the ego in the next cage over whispered, grinning ear to ear with sharp teeth and malicious intent.

The man was afraid. He didn't trust the other ego, and he didn't trust Actor. And yet...

The man was no longer lying on the ground. He stood, hands on the bars of his cage.

"It's time," he agreed.

The man was afraid and ashamed, but, he pointed out to himself, at least he wasn't lying on the ground anymore. He was standing tall. And he was going to fight for his friends.

The other ego cackled like a hyena, and the egos across the path shifted nervously.

"Why is he laughing like that?" Yandere whispered. "Isn't he in the same situation as the rest of us?"

But neither of the two egos were, because they had their powers to protect themselves, and now they were going to use their powers to protect the others.

The man breathed in slowly, then let it out.

"It's time," he repeated.

The shame went away, but not the fear.

The other ego laughed again, and the man shivered.

No, he thought to himself. Not the fear.

Actor strode into the room, grinning ear to ear like a fox.

"What a night!" he greeted the egos. "Why, I must have stayed up past midnight for the first time in weeks!" He laughed. "Have to get my beauty sleep, you know! But it was worth it."

He gestured to the door dramatically and stated, "OK, Google."

Bing gasped and grabbed the bars of his cell and Google stomped through the door, movements not as smooth as before. The other egos murmured amongst each other as Actor cackled with glee.

"Google!" The orange themed android shouted, and then shrunk back as Actor faced him.

"What did you do to him?!" Yandere cried, but Actor ignored her.

"Why on Earth did you think I wouldn't be able to break him?" He spun in a circle, hands flying upwards. "I can break all of you!"

He moved swiftly down the rows of cages, pausing to suddenly face Yancy's cage.

"Boo!" he said dramatically, and Yancy flinched backward in surprise, which set off more laughter from the man in red. Actor turned around again, scrutinizing the egos with a calculating eye.

"King!" He called out, striding towards King and Erik's cage. The ego in question didn't back away, but stiffened. "Tell me, have you thought about what I said?" He leaned forwards.

The King of the Squirrels seemed to be fighting back tears, hunching in on himself. Erik reached over and gripped his shoulder silently, and King took a deep breath.

"It's not my fault," he said lowly, as if he didn't believe himself, and Actor cackled, drawing closer.

"You know its true," he said invitingly, and when King shook his head, Actor's smile dropped.

"Say it." He demanded, and King shook his head again. With a snarl, Actor reached for the cell door.

"Hey now," drawled a voice, and Actor turned away from the nearly-crying King to face them. The Author stood there, somehow free of his cage, standing tall with his signature baseball bat resting on his shoulders. He grinned, all sharp teeth and malicious intent.

"Not that I don't mind a bit of teasing," he continued, sounding amused. "But its funnier when I'm doing it. Not you. And I don't appreciate being locked up."

Actor gawked. "How the hell did you get out?"

"The same way the Host got out," the Host drawled, stepping into the light behind Actor. The man in red spun around, eyes almost comically wide.

"They are not!" Actor cried out, attention on the wrong man. The self-proclaimed hero turned again, but was too slow to avoid the incoming swing of the bat.

"Keep him busy for a moment?" The Author cackled like a hyena as he passed the bat to the blind man, freeing his hands to pull out the notebook and pen he had torn into existence.

"The Host is glad to comply," The Host smirked as he slammed the bat into Actor's side, putting forth all his fear and shame and anger into his hits.

Actor snarled in pain and his aura lashed out, sending the Host flying into the side of Illinois' cage. He dropped to the floor, temporarily stunned physically and mentally. His aura didn't act like Dark's, it was solid, how on earth-?

"You absolute fools," Actor seethed, and the Host heard something drip onto the floor. "You _imbeciles_ ," he hissed, sounding enraged, and the Host scrambled to his feet quickly, but not quick enough, He felt the whoosh of air before- nothing.

"Host, move, _now_ ," The Author snapped, sounding strained, and the Host scrambled towards the sound of his voice.

"How are you doing this," Actor rasped out, each word slow and dragged out. The Host furrowed his eyebrows.

"Did the Author... freeze Actor in place?" The Host asked, realizing the words to be true as they left his mouth.

"How are you _doing this_ ," Actor snarled again, and the Author breathed out sharply in response.

"How are you _talking_ ," The Author returned back, an edge appearing in his voice that the Host wished he couldn't recognize. But he did, because that voice once was his. Fear.

"Actor couldn't reply, because he couldn't stand a chance against the might of both the Host and the Author," The Host stated, weaving his words through the air, binding the self-proclaimed hero further. The Host found himself surprised by the amount of effort needed to immobilize Actor, but soon the man resembled a statue and The Host felt a moment of triumph, allowing his narrations to give him a better sense of the room around him. It wouldn't be too difficult for The Host to free the other egos, and for a moment he entertained victory.

And then Actor winked, looking straight at the blind ego. The Host faltered in his narrations, feeling his fear return, and Actor sprang into action, lashing out and sending The Host stumbling back.

"You idiots," Actor cackled, a manic edge to his voice, straightening up with deliberate slowness. "You can't possibly defeat me in my domain."

"The man in red-" The Host rushed to continue binding the man, but Actor was faster. He darted forward and cut off The Host's narrations with a sharp hit to the throat. The Host staggered, hands flying up to his neck, coughing. He dimly heard a sharp shout come from someone else- The Author?- and the sound of something hitting the floor. Panicked, the Host spun around in a futile attempt to keep track of the danger he was in.

The Author and Actor were exchanging blows, blocking and dodging with a speed the Host knew that he himself no longer possessed. As he sensed rather than watched the Author attempt to dig his fingers into Actor's eyes, he admitted to himself that the Author was more powerful than the Host.

The fighting went back and forth, and the Host struggled to keep track of what was happening. Both were clearly skilled in some ways, and that which they lacked in skill they made up in power.

It was a minuscule mistake, so minor the Host wasn't entirely sure it wasn't on purpose. The Author put too much force into a hit, and Actor dodged, grabbing the Author's arm and using the Author's momentum to pull him off balance, sending the writer crashing into the bars of Yancy's cage, sending the ego in the cage scrambling backward. The Host leaped forward towards Actor's undefended back desperately, trying to give the Author the time needed to get back up.

But Actor was more powerful than the Author, and more powerful than the Host. Aura flaring, the man in red sent the blind ego flying with ease, crashing against another ego's cage. The Host didn't know who was in the cage, but he could feel their hands reaching through the bars to help him up quickly. He struggled to get back on his feet but by the time he had succeeded, Actor was there again, slamming him against the bars, the Host's head snapping back against the bars with a resounding crack. Actor was shouting as he slammed the Host against the bars again, spittle flying from his mouth to land on the Host's face, although the Host was too disoriented to make a snarky comment about it.

Someone shouted his name, Dr. Iplier perhaps? The Host was in too much pain to care, it consuming his mind and impossible to ignore. His knees crumpled until Actor was forced to carry all of The Host's weight, at which point the villain let go of the Host with one hand.

"Hold still," Actor breathed into The Host's ear, and the Host wondered in a daze when Actor had gotten his face so close to his. "This is going to hurt."

And then he drove his fist into The Host's face, sending shooting pains across his mouth as he connected with the Host's jaw. Despite the agonizing pain, the Host realized with sudden clarity exactly what Actor was attempting to do: dislocate or break The Host's jaw to prevent him from talking. He flopped like a fish wildly, but the other man simply held him higher off the ground to prevent any leverage over than the bars of the cage. As another hit landed on the Host's face, he idly wondered if this counted as a 9 on the Indiana Polyclinic Combined Pain Scale. Reluctantly, he relegated it to an 8, but, he thought to himself as he cried out involuntarily as yet another hit landed on his face, if Actor succeeded in breaking his jaw he was allowed to place it as a 9.

And then Actor broke his jaw with another hit with far more force behind it and the Host passed out.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kind of a small chapter but if I recall correctly the next chapter is going to be longer and more exciting

Clarity in waking was slow, slow in a way The Host had never been familiar with. His entire life had been plagued with nightmares and the ability to wake with the slightest sound, an unfortunate happenstance that led him to live in the woods by himself and later, hiding out in his library.

He opened his mouth to speak, groggy and confused, only for blinding pain to spark across his face. The Host cried out involuntarily, dimly aware of someone’s hand on his face, keeping his mouth shut. It was both a blessing and a curse that the pain helped The Host wake faster. Someone was wiping the half-dried blood off his face, a luxury The Host had previously been unable to afford while in his cage. He tensed, single-handedly focusing on the blinding pain in his jaw and the gentleness of the hand on his face, carefully avoiding hurting the Host further.

The Host focused on the hand on his face, noting the location of the calluses.

“D’ctor,” he slurred out, whimpering when his jaw screamed in pain at his attempt to talk.

“Don’t talk, Host.” Dr. Iplier said, carefully wrapping a fresh bandage around the Host’s face. “Your jaw is broken.”

The Host hesitated before trying to speak again, carefully trying to keep his mouth from moving when he slurred out the next word.

“W’...?”

“I said no talking.” Dr. Iplier said, more firm this time. He placed the Host’s hand in his. “One tap is yes. Two taps no. Understand?”

The Host tapped once.

“Good. Do you remember what happened?”

The Host frowned. He and the Author had planned to take down Actor. Judging by the pain in his face, the Host was reluctant to say that he won. However, if Dr. Iplier was here…

“Host?”

He tapped once reluctantly.

“Okay,” Dr. Iplier said, and the Host caught a hint of anxiousness in his voice. He frowned.

“Actor took you and The Author down.” Dr. Iplier said, and The Host wasn’t sure if he was thankful or not for the doctor’s bluntness.

“I was able to take care of you and the others.” Dr. Iplier sounded regretful. The Host frowned. What did the doctor do to let Actor give him permission to take them? He squeezed the doctor’s hand in question. 

“He wanted you guys not to die on him.” The doctor said. The Host tapped Dr. Iplier’s hand twice. 

No.

“What?” Dr. Iplier said, but they knew each other too well. He sighed reluctantly. “I did make a deal.” The Host waited patiently for the doctor’s confession. “Actor made me be the one to break The Author’s hands.” The Host paused.

The Author’s hands were broken. He couldn’t write. The Host’s jaw was broken. He couldn’t talk. The Host groaned deep in his throat, frustrated and a little hopeless.

"I'm sorry," Dr. Iplier said, voice shaking, and The Host realized the other ego was holding back tears. "I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't have bent to his whims like that, I know, I just-" Something wet landed on the Host's hand as the doctor's voice broke. "I just-"

The Host squeezed Dr. Iplier's hand firmly. He understood. The doctor had wanted to help, and chances were that the Author's hands would have been broken anyway, perhaps even more damaged at the hands of Actor than by the doctor.

"Oh, so you forgive him, do you?" spat a voice from nearby, bitter and seething like a wild cat with its leg caught in a bear trap, and the Host instinctively tried to roll away from the sound of the Author lurking in the next cage over.

"If only I didn't turn into such a coward in the future," The Author snarled, voice rising as he began to wind himself up, but a harsh clang interrupted the starting tirade.

"Perhaps I broke the jaw of the wrong ego," drawled Actor from the doorway. The sound of shuffling suggested that the Author shrank away to the back of his cell, and Actor huffed in the back of his throat in amusement.

"Come now, 'Doctor'," Actor said, mocking the Host's name for Dr. Iplier. "Time's up."

As Dr. Iplier stood up, he gave the Host's hand one squeeze back before letting go.

"I really don't know why you waste your time with them," Actor continued. "It's not as if they aren't going to get broken again."

The Host listened carefully as Dr. Iplier headed back to his respective cell silently.

"After all," Actor said, seemingly annoyed by the lack of response. "Some of them break so easily." He snapped his fingers, and the sound of metal clanging echoed across the room.

"Oof!" One of the egos cried, the air getting knocked out of them. The robotic tinge to their voice suggested it was Bing.

"OK Google," Actor said. "Hit him again."

Another clang, and a groan.

"You thought he was your friend, didn't you?" Actor sympathized mockingly. "And yet he's just an emotionless robot, like you."

"I'm an android," Bing gritted out.

"Again." Actor said sharply, and the sound of Google hitting Bing rang in the Host's ears again.

the Host tried to move his mouth, to whisper and mumble the same words he had repeated time and time again since they had arrived, but nothing happened except for his jaw lashing back in pain. He forced down a whimper and lay on the floor.

He thought to himself the words, wishing his power could extend to his mind.

The actor leaves the egos alone. He doesn't hurt them as badly as he wants to. The actor leaves the egos alone. 

But naturally, it didn't work.

The Host closed his eyes and wished he was stronger. Strong enough to protect himself, to protect the others.

"Coward," The Author hissed from the other cell, quieter this time, and the Host silently agreed.


End file.
